AC Blu Rm dining vs specialty dining

[chaka7969]

Can I get some opinions on AC's Blu rm dining. Is it as good as specialty dining? I have only experienced sp dining on Celeb Constellation and on HAL Zuiderdam. They where both fantastic but I favored Celeb.

[SeaCod]

Blu's really good, but I would suggest one night in Muranos, it's fantastic.

[Seapoint]

In our experience Blu is as good as the speciality dining rooms. In fact, on our January trip on Solstice, the executive chef of Blu was promoted to be Exec chef of all the speciality restaurants on Solstice.:)

[Gracie115]

Blu is as good as the specialty restaurants on the SOLSTICE class ships in my opinion. We won't bother with either Tuscan Grill or Murano's again but IF we did it would be Tuscan Grill not Murano's. Having said that, as good as Blu is I don't think ANYTHING is as good as the Specialty Restaurant on the M class ships like Constellation. They stand alone, the best at sea in my opinion.

 

Murano's tries, unsuccessfully we think, to emulate those Spec. Rest. on the M class but fails. The Normandie on Summit and Olympic on Millie are wonderful!!

[Goofyisme]

Blu on the Soltice is outstanding and I would be happy eating there every evening, but will always set aside at least one night to go to Murano for a really good dining experience. Tuscan Grill just did not meet our expectations and we did not try Silk Harvest as the menu just didn't appeal to us.

[chaka7969]

Blu is as good as the specialty restaurants on the SOLSTICE class ships in my opinion. We won't bother with either Tuscan Grill or Murano's again but IF we did it would be Tuscan Grill not Murano's. Having said that, as good as Blu is I don't think ANYTHING is as good as the Specialty Restaurant on the M class ships like Constellation. They stand alone, the best at sea in my opinion.

 

Murano's tries, unsuccessfully we think, to emulate those Spec. Rest. on the M class but fails. The Normandie on Summit and Olympic on Millie are wonderful!!

 

I like your comments about my orig question. You have helped us decide to pick a cruise on an M class ship again instead of the newer S. T-pool and Sp. dining are priority! Thanks, Curtis

[DanManBob]

I like your comments about my orig question. You have helped us decide to pick a cruise on an M class ship again instead of the newer S. T-pool and Sp. dining are priority! Thanks, Curtis

 

First time cruiser here.....what is "T-pool?"

[dkjretired]

I like your comments about my orig question. You have helped us decide to pick a cruise on an M class ship again instead of the newer S. T-pool and Sp. dining are priority! Thanks, Curtis

 

M class ships don't have it over the S class ships as far as dining. Tuscan, Bistro and Muranos as well as MDR and Blu make it much better...Also, Aqua Spa cafe which is free....The S class ships are spectacular and have it way over the M class ships for dining.....

[jackdiamond]

We agree that the Blu dining (both breakfast and dinner) is outstanding; hence, we have never been tempted to visit the specialty restaurants. Also, the Aqua Spa Cafe is very nice, expecially after 1-2 hours of pool walking and laps in the Solarium.

[chaka7969]

First time cruiser here.....what is "T-pool?"

 

Thalasso therapy pool. It's mineral water (taste like salt water-I don't know the exact minerals), body temperature pool. It has a couple of massaging water spouts. They look like the water faucets on your kitchen sink only much larger. There is a constant stream of warm water passing through the large diameter spout (about 2"), standing underneath and you have the force of the water massaging your back. There are also stainless steel rollers which you lay on while bubbles massage you. It's like a whirlpool except swimming pool size. They also have it on Holland America Lines. Not sure if it's on all the ships. It was on the Zuiderdamm. We gladly paid extra on HAL. Because we had to pay very few people used the T-pool (not sure if that's what HAL calls it). The most people we saw in the pool were 4 at one time. It is large enough to hold 15 to 20. There was also a whirlpool in the center of the pool.

 

Enjoy your 1st cruise!

[Gracie115]

I like your comments about my orig question. You have helped us decide to pick a cruise on an M class ship again instead of the newer S. T-pool and Sp. dining are priority! Thanks, Curtis

 

 

OH....well I'm sure you'll love your cruise on whatever "M" class you've picked...especially if it's the newly refurbished Constellation. But I didn't mean to dissuade from the Solstice class. We LOVED the Solstice and that was mostly because of Blu, which is far better than ANY main dining room we've ever been in. It's just not equal to the Specialty Restaurants of the "M" class. And despite what others say Murano's isn't either. It was very crowded when we were there, the service was slow and spotty(NOT leisurely) the food was good, not great and the wine service was wholly disappointing. We loved the Normandie, all 4 times we went over two different cruises and felt the same about the Olympic on Millie. Murano's is not as good in our opinion. If you are going mainly for the food and plan to eat A LOT in specialty dining then you've made the right choice....but the Solstice class ships are beautiful and Blu is great, including having the BEST breakfast we've ever had at sea....either way am sure you'll have a great cruise!!! Enjoy!:D

[Gracie115]

M class ships don't have it over the S class ships as far as dining. Tuscan, Bistro and Muranos as well as MDR and Blu make it much better...Also, Aqua Spa cafe which is free....The S class ships are spectacular and have it way over the M class ships for dining.....

 

 

I love the Solstice class too, but don't think any of the dining options are as good as the Specialty Restaurants on the "M" class....that's not enough reason to change our plans for our Med. cruise on Silhouette next year!!!:D

[CelebrityMan]

Hi,

 

I think this thread shows a fair cross-section of the divergent opinions on both S-class and M-class and their various dining options, etc.

 

While we tend to prefer the M-class as a more user-friendly size of vessel, we also love the S-class and would not hesitate to sail them if theirs is the preferred itinerary. The only thing we strongly dislike about the S-class is their size of closet and their inadequate bedside stands.

 

As far as dining, we find the S-class Murano to be a fantastic addition to the Celebrity specialty restaurants, to our way of thinking every bit as upscale and elegant as The Olympic (our favorite) on Millennium.

 

Regarding Blu, for a class structure dining room, we found the service there to be outstanding and personal, more akin to what the MDR used to be many years ago, but not quite as polished and presentational as a specialty restaurant.

 

Have a fantastic cruise. Try all the venues and find something to enjoy with each one.

 

 

 

CM

[librarylady19]

Loved Blu also. The food was top notch, service professional and well-paced and preferred having a table for 2. It was never noisy in Blu and I really enjoyed the atmosphere. Every detail was well thought-out. I liked that the portions were not huge, it was quality over quantity. With the plethora of food always available on a cruise, I really don't need to get totally stuffed at dinner.

Did not try Muranos on Equinox as I had read it wasn't quite up to Muranos on Century (which was a real dining experience!). Did try Silk Harvest and it wasn't worth the extra $$ imo. Now, I would love to try Qsine and would pay for that experience...loved to try lots of little dishes, cleverly presented. Hope to sail Eclipse next year.

[dkjretired]

I love the Solstice class too, but don't think any of the dining options are as good as the Specialty Restaurants on the "M" class....that's not enough reason to change our plans for our Med. cruise on Silhouette next year!!!:D

I agree with you about the Specialty Restaurants on m class ship and the modest difference between them and Murano on the S class ships can't compare with the various venues on the S class ships..

[dkjretired]

Hi,

 

I think this thread shows a fair cross-section of the divergent opinions on both S-class and M-class and their various dining options, etc.

 

While we tend to prefer the M-class as a more user-friendly size of vessel, we also love the S-class and would not hesitate to sail them if theirs is the preferred itinerary. The only thing we strongly dislike about the S-class is their size of closet and their inadequate bedside stands.

 

 

Regarding Blu, for a class structure dining room, we found the service there to be outstanding and personal, more akin to what the MDR used to be many years ago, but not quite as polished and presentational as a specialty restaurant.

 

 

 

CM

 

Class structure?????

[chaka7969]

OH....well I'm sure you'll love your cruise on whatever "M" class you've picked...especially if it's the newly refurbished Constellation. But I didn't mean to dissuade from the Solstice class. We LOVED the Solstice and that was mostly because of Blu, which is far better than ANY main dining room we've ever been in. It's just not equal to the Specialty Restaurants of the "M" class. And despite what others say Murano's isn't either. It was very crowded when we were there, the service was slow and spotty(NOT leisurely) the food was good, not great and the wine service was wholly disappointing. We loved the Normandie, all 4 times we went over two different cruises and felt the same about the Olympic on Millie. Murano's is not as good in our opinion. If you are going mainly for the food and plan to eat A LOT in specialty dining then you've made the right choice....but the Solstice class ships are beautiful and Blu is great, including having the BEST breakfast we've ever had at sea....either way am sure you'll have a great cruise!!! Enjoy!:D

Your opinion about the specialty dining being better on M class as compared to S class was not the only reason for our choice. But I have to say we could not see how the Sp dining on the Const. could have been beat. We have only rarely experienced such fine dining and that was on land! We are saddened by the fact that T-pools are not on the newer ships. Maybe Celeb will put one on the newest ship? That fact was the main reason for our choosing M over S. We will probably go on the Constellation which was our 1st (and only) Celeb cruise. Thanks again, Curtis

[SeaCod]

Good grief, has this thread gone off topic.

 

Back to the OP's question, Blu is wonderful as I said before, but it's not as top notch as Murano's. Murano's on the Equinox out did any restaurant of it's kind on any Celebrity ship we've sailed on.

[Gracie115]

Your opinion about the specialty dining being better on M class as compared to S class was not the only reason for our choice. But I have to say we could not see how the Sp dining on the Const. could have been beat. We have only rarely experienced such fine dining and that was on land! We are saddened by the fact that T-pools are not on the newer ships. Maybe Celeb will put one on the newest ship? That fact was the main reason for our choosing M over S. We will probably go on the Constellation which was our 1st (and only) Celeb cruise. Thanks again, Curtis

 

Well...we're going on Silhouette next year...will let you know if there's a T-Pool!!!:D Couldn't agree with you more about the M Class specialty restaurants...they were the 1st ones for Celebrity and are still the best..BY FAR!!! My memories of our visits to the Normandie on Summit are still as vivid as ever and remains one of the best dining experiences, if not the best we've had anywhere on land or sea. Murano's couldn't touch that level...at least not on Solstice!!